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Related Concept Videos

Bonanno's Theory of Grieving01:17

Bonanno's Theory of Grieving

Grieving is a complex psychological and emotional process that varies significantly among individuals. George Bonanno's research on bereavement identified four distinct patterns of grieving, offering a nuanced understanding of how people cope with significant loss, such as the death of a spouse, over extended periods. These patterns — resilience, recovery, chronic dysfunction, and delayed grief — highlight the diversity in emotional responses and adaptive mechanisms.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 3, 2026

Setup and Execution of the Rapid Cycle Deliberate Practice Death Notification Curriculum
04:36

Setup and Execution of the Rapid Cycle Deliberate Practice Death Notification Curriculum

Published on: August 5, 2020

A modest proposal about bereavement and recovery.

David E Balk1

  • 1Department of Health and Nutrition Sciences, Brooklyn College of the City, University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11210, USA. dbalk@brooklyn.cuny.edu

Death Studies
|July 26, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Recovery, not resilience, aptly describes post-bereavement change. This study explores how recovery facilitates transforming change after loss, challenging the prevailing use of resilience in thanatology.

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Thanatology
  • Grief Studies

Background:

  • The term 'resilience' is increasingly favored in thanatology literature for describing responses to bereavement.
  • The term 'recovery' has been dismissed as inappropriate for long-term bereavement responses.
  • Standard English definitions of resilience emphasize the ability to recover quickly from misfortune.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To argue that 'recovery' is a more fitting term than 'resilience' for describing post-bereavement trajectories.
  • To explore the concept of transforming change following bereavement.
  • To examine the reflexive meaning of 'recovery' in the context of profound life changes.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review of thanatology and general English dictionaries.

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Setup and Execution of the Rapid Cycle Deliberate Practice Death Notification Curriculum
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Setup and Execution of the Rapid Cycle Deliberate Practice Death Notification Curriculum

Published on: August 5, 2020

  • Qualitative research involving bereaved teenagers and college students.
  • Analysis of manifestations of transforming change in bereaved individuals.

    • Main Results:

    • Research with bereaved youth indicates significant transforming changes across spiritual, cognitive, emotional, and interpersonal domains.
    • These changes align with a reflexive understanding of 'recovery'.
    • The definition of resilience as 'quick recovery' appears incongruent with profound post-bereavement transformation.

    Conclusions:

    • The term 'recovery' better captures the potential for transformative change after bereavement than 'resilience'.
    • Bereavement can lead to significant personal growth and transformation, as evidenced in bereaved adolescents and young adults.
    • Further linguistic exploration is needed to find the most precise term for post-bereavement transformation if 'recovery' is deemed insufficient.